The next morning came as fast as it went. Classes were now pumping out promotions for the last class matches of the semester, which also acted as the final exams. The class returned from the trip and turned in their reports, which Chifuyu promptly burned in secret because they were simply a diversionary tactic that spectacularly failed to prevent attention from being drawn to the mission. As soon as after school club activities came around, nearly all students swarmed the 1st year Representative Contenders for some explanation on the spectacle.
"So, hey? What really made the Gospel run wild?" One of the students asked.
"Is it true that there was no one inside it?" Another asked.
"Weren't you afraid when you were fighting? Wasn't it scary?"
The pilots weren't saying anything. They just walked down the hallway with their eyes closed.
"Come on, you guys. Tell us," a student pressured, "The teachers aren't say anything to anybody."
"So sorry," Charlotte sighed, "but the officials have labeled this top secret."
"No kidding...even we haven't been told all the particulars yet..." Rin sipped her tea.
"I understand. You are curious about the situation," Laura explained," but if you knew more, they would place restrictions on you as well. Am I clear?"
Then, the students started to back off:
"Um, I don't think I'd like that..."
"Yeah...I wouldn't wanna be spied on or anything..."
Cecilia looked around and noticed a certain emptiness in the space, "Say, where did Ichika and Houki get off to?"
"They're enacting the punishment as we speak," Laura answered.
"Punishment? What punishment?"
The punishment of endurance. As punishment for both not paying attention to her surroundings during her first fight, and for begging to be punished, Houki has to endure two training sessions a day, until the final exams. Earlier in the day, she faced off against Lincoln and Ichika when they were two separate units, and barely scraped a victory. Now, she was fighting against them one on "one".
"Up high!" Ichika swung his sword downward, making Houki block the swing and prepare for a counter attack.
"Down low!" Lincoln saw her katanas charge for an energy attack and disrupted them with a card to her thighs. Houki tried to gain some distance, but Ichika swung Lincoln outward, giving him enough force and velocity to hit Houki with a shield throw. Houki changed tactics and released her ramming bits, but Lincoln swung Ichika outward and destroyed them. Houki fired off her energy waves, but Ichika shoved Lincoln out front to block the hits, right before Lincoln threw several cards to distract Houki and shoved Ichika out front to return the attack in the like. Houki anticipated that maneuver and attempted to round their backs, but Ichika released a short-ranged Ignition Boost that slammed into Houki and broke her guard.
"TOO SLOW!" The boys screamed as the sword came down and delivered massive damage to the Akatsubaki.
In her mind, Houki had mentally prepared herself to fight two opponents at once. But really, she was fighting a Union knight. Ichika and Lincoln have joined arms to become one unit, with Ichika taking up the sword, and Lincoln utilizing his wing shield.
She wiped the sweat off her brow and panted, "Not exactly a fair fight...if you ask me..."
"That's the point of a punishment!" Lincoln quipped, "Hello!"
"You wanted this, remember?" Ichika took his battle stance.
Houki didn't say anything. She just chuckled as she lunged towards the union knight. She knew her Kenran Boutou required absolute concentration and calmness of her heart, so instead of even bothering to attempt it, she decided to go all out on this training session. This was the only time that Ichika would be fully devoted to her, and she wanted to make sure he couldn't think of anything else tonight.
The other pilots watched the fight from the upper deck courtyard.
"Oh...that punishment..." Cecilia sighed.
"What, you forgot already?" Rin grinned.
"Well...maybe..."
"Don't feel too bad," Charlotte said, "I don't see the point of this either." Then, she saw Houki land a surprise attack on Ichika's backside, "Maybe for self-improvement, but other than that...ehh?"
Laura checked the time and nudged Rin, "We have to prepare now."
"Oh, yeah. Yeah," Rin followed Laura out as Cecilia and Charlotte watched Houki throw everything she had at Ichika and Lincoln and yet suffer a humiliating defeat when both the shield and sword made their way to Houki's blind spot.
Later that night, the trio made their way back to their room, exhausted and sweating profusely.
"That was not fair..." Houki muttered, "You two fused together and became overpowered..."
"Did we dance or polymerize?" Lincoln quipped.
"You lost because you're putting your rage into it," Ichika said, "You need to calm yourself down a lot."
"Oh, get off me!" Houki shoved him, and the three shared a laugh until-
"Is it wise for you to drop your guard now?" Laura startled them from behind.
"GOOD NIGHT, WOMAN!" Lincoln shrieked.
"Laura?" Houki said, "Why are you out this late?"
"She was gaming with me," Rin shocked everyone by taking Laura's side, "And we're next on the training list."
Houki shuddered, "YOU TWO?!"
Ichika looked away, "Uh, yeah... they insisted on going next..."
"Iiiiiiichiiiiikaaaaaaaaa-"
"Ok, that's enough brooding!" Cecilia yanked Houki away, "We have much recovery to do!"
"Wait!" Houki protested, "I haven't said my piece yet!"
"You'll say it tomorrow!"
"No! Get off me! ALCOOOOOOTT?!" And with that, Houki was dragged back into her room.
Clearing Kiyoka and Sayuka's field of vision.
"Oh boy..." Ichika groaned.
"I got this," Lincoln gave him a thumbs up and confronted the two people that attempted to ruin his social life long after he did. When he got to them, they were silent, but he could feel the disdain they still had for him. "It's too late, now," he said, "If you want me to turn tail and cower, you lost your chance."
"We're not going to do anything," Kiyoka said.
"You wanted to be left alone?" Sayuka hissed, "Fine. We'll leave you alone."
Lincoln grinned, "No, you won't..." and turned away.
"If only you'd just stay quiet!" Kiyoka screamed.
"This isn't over, Loud!" Sayuka turned away as well.
"I know..." Lincoln whispered, knowing that he already enacted an insurance policy to make sure that it indeed was over.
The following day was the start of the final exams. Lincoln's insurance policy was very simple: since so many people on the outside believed he wouldn't make it through high school, much less its first semester, the bar was set very low for him; He was the runt of the litter. So, all he had to do was blow it away by excelling in everything he did, with the support of his friends, and the bar would be raised for everyone else.
And that was indeed what happened, because on the Friday after the exams, all test scores were posted for the students to see. At the end of the day, all the students gathered at the bulletin boards to check their scores.
Not surprisingly, Ichika scored at the bottom of the year.
"Oh my g-ugh..." Ichika groaned, "Even after all that work..."
"I don't get it!" Lincoln griped, "What went wrong?!"
"Probably a lapse in memory triggered by..." Charlotte said, and then paused, "...Wait..."
"What's the matter?" Lincoln saw Charlotte trembling, but he couldn't tell if it was shame, or excitement. Then, he saw Ichika's overall score.
"No way..." Charlotte quivered, "The lowest ranked first year...is an 82..."
"Uh, is that good?"
"In terms of the Japanese grading system, it's an A..." Charlotte slightly cringed, "but an 82?..."
"Wow..." Ichika was half smug, and half embarrassed, "Well, when you put it like that-"
"Aw, tough nubs, Orimuu!" A student suddenly hugged him from behind.
"We'll help you study for the next one!" Another said.
"Ok," Ichika nodded, "I'll consider it," and made the girls pout.
Lincoln was still looking at the list of scores and noticed that two were missing. He couldn't find Kiyoka or Sayuka's scores anywhere, so he shrugged it off, believing that they really did turn in their letter of withdrawal.
Cecilia was called to the classroom after school to assist Maya with an urgent matter. She saw Kiyoka and Sayuka sitting at their desks, not bothering to look up, and Hana preparing something for Maya. She walked inside, "Miss Yamada? You needed to see me?"
Maya turned around, "Oh, hello there! You're just in time!"
"For what?..." Cecilia was slightly confused, "I was under the impression that this was an emergency."
"Well, it kinda is..." Maya said, "Do you know what happened the night after the tournament?"
"The night after..." Cecilia didn't want to relive that night because Ichika's decision wasn't with her, "Need I ask..."
"Probably not," Maya said, "Have you heard the rumors about Loud and his family?"
"Oh, yes I have," Cecilia glanced at Kiyoka, "I know who started them as well."
"That's the issue," Hana said, "Miss Orimura gave those two a 25-point penalty on every single final exam. Both scored below 85 on all of them."
"All of them?..." Cecilia was really confused. Normally, that kind of penalty wouldn't make any sense whatsoever...unless the finals themselves accounted for a huge percentage of the final grade, "Wait! Does that mean-"
"Yep," Maya said, "they've hit the F-range."
"Oh my..." Cecilia gasped.
"And the day they returned from the trip," Maya continued, "they turned in their letter of withdrawal...meaning within a few weeks time, they'll be expelled and excommunicated."
Cecilia suddenly became aggravated after hearing that. She couldn't help but think that Kiyoka and Sayuka were running away from taking responsibility for their actions. Why else would they prepare a letter of withdrawal right after taking a penalty? "So," she seethed, "you called me here to set them straight."
"Well, naturally," Maya nodded, "You're one of the few first-year students who broke into the 90s."
"And I'm another one," Hana piped, "I can assist you in the classroom."
"Oh, I see..." Cecilia smirked. She let her pride overtake her body as she approached the two flunkies, "A fitting end for one who would attempt to bend an innocent man to her will, wouldn't you say?"
"Oh, shut up!" Kiyoka shouted, "You would've done that too if you were in our seat!"
For once, Cecilia agreed. She, too, had wanted to get payback on Lincoln for telling Ichika about the bet, but she realized that it was major misunderstanding. She still shared that sentiment, which was why she laid out her statement, "You are quite correct in assuming that...which is why I'm taking corrective action right now."
"What?" Sayuka's face changed, "What corrective action?!"
"I will never be you, and you will never be me," Cecilia said a little too proudly, "Trying to change that is like trying to bring a Golden Age wedding dress into the New Millennium. Something will be lost in translation. It's pointless."
"What exactly are you talking about?!" Kiyoka demanded.
"Your training," Cecilia leaned in, "Starting tomorrow morning, I'm going to drill you into letting go of your petty grudge. This is the only way to eliminate any risk of excommunication."
"HAA?!"
"Don't "HAA?!" me," Cecilia wagged her finger, "You did this to yourself when you decided to withdrawal...right after getting caught."
Kiyoka and Sayuka gritted their teeth in defeat.
"To think you two were to stoop to the level of hoodlums..." Cecilia shook her head, "...I'll have to retrain you very... very thoroughly."
Maya laughed nervously, "Glad to hear you're on board..."
Later that night...
"HUZZAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"
...the group rallied at the school entrance for a celebration bonfire. Kim has been chosen to represent South Korea in the next Mondo Grosso.
"Three cheers to Kim Ha-Jin!" Everyone shouted.
Akina wrung her arms around the new graduate, "This here's living proof that dreams do come true!"
"Hey, I just got my diploma!" Kim yelped, "You better not tear it or anything!"
"It's just a high quality piece of paper!" Rin blared, somehow getting drunk on just a can of soda, "I can easily turn it into a crane!"
"You would do what?!" Kim was somewhat repulsed, "Are you aware of what you just said?!"
"Oh, you want a demonstration?" Rin got into play fight mode and lunged herself at Kim's waist, "Come here, ya looney loofah!"
"NO! GET AWAY!"
"Ooh, let me get in on the fun!" Akina suddenly wanted to chase Kim, but with a friend, "Come on, Houki!"
"Huh?!" Poor Houki, "The hell are you-"
"Are you trying to unhinge me?!" Kim screamed.
"WHAT AM I DOIIIIIIIIIIIII~~~" Houki was dragged all over the courtyard.
Everyone who didn't participate in the chase just laughed it off.
"Ahhhh, such is the life of an IS Representative," Cecilia commented, "You aren't allowed to catch a break."
"Must be nice with all that attention..." Charlotte smugly fantasized.
"I wouldn't put anything past them," Hana raised her soda can, "To free days!"
"KANBAI!" The group raised their cans and took one big gulp, and hurled out a big one.
"OH MY LANTA!" Lincoln pinched his nose, "WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DRINKING?!"
"Oh, posh off!" Cecilia griped, "It's just diet coke!"
"More like, diet Scope!" Lincoln tapped Ichika's forearm, "Hey, dude! Give her a real can, would you?!"
"Oh, sure," Ichika stopped chatting with. Charlotte and- "Hey, reload!" -tossed Cecilia the same brand of soda.
"Wha-you too?!" Lincoln was offended.
"You know how much sugar's in that can you're holding?!" Ichika shouted at Lincoln.
"And aspartame's any better!"
"Oh, get your hardline ass outta my face!"
"I wouldn't want a cult following anyway!"
"That can be arranged!" Ichika grabbed Lincoln and splashed his soda in his face, "How's the taste of diet mouthwash?!"
"I like it THIS MUCH!" Lincoln responded by tainting Ichika's hair with regular soda.
"AGH! Ugh..." Ichika recoiled, "Eww..."
He could feel his hairs slowly sticking together. He actually felt his pores getting clogged by the drink. He grabbed three more cans and shook them, "Oh, you're gonna pay for that, Coke head!"
"Bring it on, Diet fiend!" Lincoln readied a full bottle.
"LET THE BATTLE BEGIIIIIIIIIIIIN!" Hana screamed, signaling the boys to begin their epic fight for dominance.
"Sacre bleu..." Charlotte marveled, "And we were here for a celebration..."
"Perish the thought," Cecilia shrugged it off, "I find it amusing seeing those two argue about my tastes-" SPLASH! "-AUGH-BLLBLLBLLBLLBBLLBLBLBBB..." Cecilia got sprayed with both guns, "What in blue blazes-PBBLLRPBLTPLLBL?!" She got sprayed again.
Lincoln and Ichika froze and turned their heads to the splash zone. They trembled when they sensed a hostile aura emitting from Cecilia.
"You need a break?" Ichika whispered.
"I think we all do..." Lincoln muttered.
"You...How dare you..." Cecilia growled, turning their heads to her converting her drones into soda sprayers, "Do you have any idea HOW MUCH TIME I GAVE TO MY HAIR?!"
"Fish...paste..." the boys started to run for their lives when she started to unload on them.
"I DEMAND COMPENSATION FOR THIS HEINOUS CRIME!" Cecilia never let up for one millisecond.
"CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT THEY ARE YAMMERING ABOUT?!" Lincoln screamed.
While Hana and Charlotte just hung back.
"Is this necessary?" Hana wondered.
"With everything that's happened..." Charlotte mused, "...very necessary."
Hana and Charlotte just sat back on the wooden log and watched the chaos devolve into an incoherent mess.
All the while, a certain bunny-eared woman was watching the moon via makeshift picnic table atop the main communications tower, safely hidden from view.
"Hahhhh...the Byakushiki sure is surprising, isn't it?" Tabane marveled, "It even has the capability of reviving its pilot. Just like..."
"...just like the Shirokishi?" Chifuyu suddenly appeared behind the needle, "Core 001, which you poured all your blood, sweat, and tears into?"
Tabane already sensed that friendly face approaching, and still welcomed her in the embrace, "What's up, Chi-Chan?"
Chifuyu knew what was up, but she had to keep it hidden. Luckily, if there's one thing that Tabane has a serious deficiency of, it's empathy. She just needed to play up to Tabane's strengths and likes to expose that weaknesses and get the answers she needed. First, a casual conversation, "I'd like to speak hypothetically about two scenarios." Then, play up what they already knew, "First, say a certain super genius plants an IS at a certain location...on the day of a certain boy's high school entrance exam. The genius would make sure that's the only one it ever moves. That way, it would look like a boy, who can't operate an IS, actually made it move."
"Hmm..." Tabane smiled smugly, "then, that would've been the only time it moved." She looked up at the moon, reflecting on that moment. Thinking back, she only did that out of curiosity. She purposely had several staff members switch the signs so that only Ichika wouldn't understand them. All she did was plant the IS there, and the rest took care of itself, "Heheheh...but to be honest, even I don't know why the Byakushiki moves. It's really a mystery."
So, not even the creator knew why the IS responded to Ichika. At least, Tabane was occupied with the thought. Now, Chifuyu needed the answer to another question. But she had to word it in the way that doesn't arouse suspicion. So... "Alright, then...let's talk about a certain...disaster," out with it, "Let's say someone wanted to debut someone they thought would be ready to make a statement to the world. But it wouldn't be that impactful unless the situation really called for it. For that someone, she makes her own personal unit... and then ups the stakes by dropping her right in the middle of a rescue mission, in which a damsel was in severe distress, and she needed to assemble a team of heroes to save the day. Quite a grand debut, wouldn't you say?"
Tabane's eyes glittered. She turned to Chifuyu in earnest, "That really would be a super genius, huh?"
"A true super genius..." Chifuyu nodded, "...one who's already managed to hack into the military computers of nearly every country on the face of the planet?"
Tabane giggled. Then, she turned to the countless stars glimmering within the dark canvas. She had a blast with the Akatsubaki, and the Shirokishi. She had a blast manipulating world events, like the incident five years ago...and the one a few days ago. "Say, Chi-Chan..." she wondered, "...does the world seem like a fun place?"
"Well..." Chifuyu closed her eyes and thought, "...more or less, I suppose..."
"I agree." And with that, Tabane was satisfied, and vanished in an instant.
Chifuyu opened her eyes and checked to see if Tabane had truly vanished. Once that was confirmed, she entered a hidden elevator, and descended to ground level, all the while rubbing her forehead in disgust. To think that Tabane was using a human life as a playtoy...but that's what comes with being a super genius. Everything gets boring, but pushing the limits becomes amusing. Such was the life of one whose body was taken beyond all capacities, to the point where human no longer describes her. Such was the life of one who came from severe frailty and vowed to never again return to that dreadful state of mind.
But sorting that out would have to wait. Two gigantic events happened the following week: end of semester ceremonies, which had to be monitored for obvious reasons, and the resettlement of the Loud family, which was a battle in and of itself. By then, Lincoln's surprise visit back home made international headlines, in which the part about Margo's brief IS history was indeed somehow wiped out, but the parts about Margo's family were most certainly left in. Everyone was in shock that one of their students had crossed international borders so brazenly, but that paled in comparison to the horrific story of why he flew. Everyone was now aware of the origin of his powers, which was further supported by salvage home footage and testimonies from neighbors and friends of the Louds. And everyone swarmed Lincoln with all sorts of questions:
"Did you really hate your family that much?"
"How come your sidekicks look like your sisters?"
"Did your sis really use you as a footstool?!"
"Are all Americans like this?..."
"Is Lucy really a goth, or a GINO?"
"Is that why you ran from your own home to come here?!"
"Why didn't you say anything about Aizawa or Yorutake?!"
"Could Lynn really have made the Olympics this year?"
"Which unfortunate soul has been cursed with the name 'Flip'?"
"What do you think is the ideal family size?"
"What the heck is wrong with Luan?"
"Patience, patience," Card Counter gently (pushed back against the tide of questions with rock-solid barriers), "Mr. Savvy will field your queries one at a time."
Lincoln had to stop every five seconds to give some sort of answer that warded them off. He only found solace in the nighttime, when 1025 became a hideout for his friends to escape from the real world. On the night before Kim's commencement, they decided to hold a party for everyone in their tightly knit group, at an arcade.
Houki didn't participate in much of the festivities, however; she spent the majority of the night on the floor, "Uuuuuhhhhh...my legs..."
"What a shame," Cecilia sat on the bench and waved her hair, "You haven't once gotten your One-Off Ability working again. Was it your lack of concentration?"
"It was a lot of things..." Houki groaned, "Ichika said my punishment would be until finals..."
"But then, you couldn't take so many L's in a row," Rin chuckled, "So you kept going until you got a W..." then, she noogied Houki, "And how many chicken dinners did you feast upon?"
Houki sighed, "Ugh...one..."
"Against a handicapped Fusion Knight, no less-Haaaahahahahahahaaa!" Rin yowled.
"Oh, you reckless little rascal," Cecilia playfully taunted, "I'd be more than happy to take you under my wing."
"Eulgh..." Houki retched, "No..."
Just then, Lincoln and Ichika bolted out of the bathroom.
"Everyone in position!" Lincoln gipped.
"She's coming!" Ichika jumped under the sheets, "Get the cake!"
"Rin, the present!" Charlotte tossed Rin a huge box to hide. Everyone hid behind something and waited for Kim to arrive.
Which turned out to be very futile because Kim arrived thirty seconds later...behind them, without their noticing her.
"Uh...what's taking so long?..." Rin was getting impatient.
"Maybe she needed to care for her image for her final celebration," Cecilia wondered.
"Image for what?" Houki whispered, "Why waste time on that nonsense?!"
Lincoln commed over to Laura, "Bun-bun to Black Hare, do you have a visual on the target?"
"Will you please stop with the inappropriate nicknames?" Laura groaned.
"Just focus on the task at hand!" Lincoln whispered, "Do you have a visual?"
"I do. Thirty meters and closing."
"What?!" Ichika exclaimed, "Where?! Has she gone inside yet?!"
Suddenly, a shout from directly behind, "YES, I HAVE!"
"AAAAA!" Everyone yelped.
"Sorry, sorry," Kim chuckled, "Didn't mean to startle you..."
Everyone crawled out of their hiding space, gasping for air.
"I thought you hadn't arrived yet..." Hana muttered.
"Seriously..." Rin panicked, "What's wrong with everyone?..."
"Didn't Laura day she was outside?..." Ichika huffed.
And then another voice, this time directly behind him, "I never said such a thing."
"WOOHAHAHAH-" Ichika and Charlotte leaped into the air and landed on the table, causing a massive mess of silverware and juice, "Ugh..."
"WHAT IS THE MATTER WITH YOU?!" Lincoln and Rin screamed.
"Your surprise surprise was so primitive that I couldn't help but inform Akina and Kim about its horrendousness," Laura blankly said.
"THAT AIN'T THE PROBLEM HERE, MISSY!" Rin jabbed a finger at Laura's chin while Lincoln sighed in resignation.
Then, Akina suddenly plopped herself onto Laura's hair, "The real problem is, we're not having party yet! What's the hold up?!"
Laura groaned.
From that point on, it was a night of merriment. Everyone was playing their hearts out, and they didn't mind the sweat that erupted from their bodies. They just took it as a sign that they were having the right kind of fun, and they wanted more, most of all Lincoln, mainly because it was the end of the semester, but also because he wanted to forge a bond as strong as possible with his new family. This was the kind of sibling companionship he had been searching for, and he was determined to ride it out to its end.
He may have been done with his old family, but they most certainly weren't done with him. The next day, the Louds safely arrived in Hokkaido and went straight to a rural landscape, where a house similar to their old home awaited them.
"Well, this isn't so bad," Lana said, "We have a ton of farmland to play around in, no noisy neighbors, and our own rice fields."
"I'd hardly call this consolation," Lisa doubted, "I'll have to restart my work from scratch."
"Hehehehhh," for some reason, Leni thought it appropriate to interrupt their moment, "WELCOME TO THE RICE FIELDS, MOTHERF-"
Lisa quickly covered Leni's mouth, "Quiet."
The older siblings ran inside to inspect the new house. Everything seemed fine, but it was an eerie feeling seeing all the furniture, appliances, and utensils, with none of the decorations or pictures. Even the bedrooms were copied perfectly. Everything was the same...with one very stark difference. This house was designed to function off-grid, meaning all essential appliances came with their own solar-lunar panels. The house had no plugs whatsoever. No TVs, internet, or signal of any sort.
"You're kidding...no!" Lori panicked after realizing what would become of her in the immediate future and ran outside, "You can't settle for this! Why would you-" She stopped when she saw Lynn on a wheelchair, sleeping soundly, "Wh...what is that?..."
"Yo," Luna gasped, "What's she doing here?"
"Wasn't she supposed to be at a hospital or something?" Lola asked.
"Sorry, kiddos," Lynn Sr had the honor of wheeling Lynn...and all medical equipment...by himself, "Your mother insisted on this," he grunted, "Luna, Lori, can you grab the IVs and ventilators?"
Lucy stayed with Rita on the porch while the older ones walked Lynn inside.
"Are you sound, mother?" Lucy asked.
Rita didn't give an answer. She just stared at the surrounding environment.
"I'll admit," Lucy said, "It's very beautiful...for a place we don't belong." She let the silence sink in for a moment, then continued, "Well, at least we'll have more time to write to our hearts' content...perhaps an adventure seeker whose entire life was upended by a family secret?"
Rita twitched upon hearing that and walked back inside. Lucy continued to stare at the lush greens and the water that reflected them perfectly. "Spirits of the river," she whispered, "please do not let my family discover the Suicide Forest..."
Inside, Lynn Sr and Luan settled LJ on the couch and disconnected all medical equipment from her. She was now just a sleeping beauty, motionless as the others started speculating.
"Is she going to be mad, though?" Luna wondered.
"What do you mean?" Lori griped.
"I mean, she had to have been told something after fighting Margo head on. Surely, Margo blabbed about everything..."
"I doubt it," Luna shook her head, "That was a pretty fierce fight to have a conversation."
"Well, we won't know until she wakes up," Lynn Sr said, "Everyone give her some space."
The moment Lynn's eye twitched, everyone held their breaths and stepped back. She started breathing normally, and then slowly opening her eyes. "Mmm...mmmmmm..." she tried to stretched her body, but...she lost all feeling in her body, "Hmm...whoa...didn't expect that...Is this what being crippled feels like?..."
Rita couldn't hold herself back and encapsulated Lynn in a mama hug, "Oh, my baby! You're finally back!"
"BGACK?!" Lynn yelped, "Help! Somebody!" She gasped when Rita was grabbed and pushed aside, "HOY...oh my goodneeee-oof!" She fell on her back again, "Uh...I'm sorry about this, but my body seems to be..."
The sisters were close to crying.
"It's ok, little sis..." Luan said, "What matters is that you're back with us..."
"We'll help you get better, little chica," Luna rubbed Lynn's shoulder, "We'll get you walking again, no problem."
"What they sahahahahaaaaid!" Leni lost it and hugged Lynn while crying her heart out.
Lynn blinked, "Um...your tears are staining my shirt..."
"I know that!" Leni sobbed, "I just...I just..." she regained her composure and backed off, "I just missed you so much..."
"So did I," Lori sat beside her.
"Whoa..." Lynn felt her head being carried to Leni's shoulder.
"Look," Lori muttered, "I know nothing I do can fix what happened to you, but can you at least find it in your heart to walk with us through this crazy journey?"
"Um...ok..." Lynn just nodded her head.
Then, her mother came around, "Lynn...honey...you're awake?..."
"Yes, I am," Lynn nodded.
"Oh, my baby..." Rita cried and hugged again, "I am so sorry that I couldn't save you...but I am prepared to make it up to you..." she cuddled Lynn's cheeks and looked into her eyes, "If there's anything...anything we can do for you, just say the word, and we'll do it!"
Lynn immediately accepted her offer, "Well...there's one thing I've been wondering..."
"Yes! What is it?!" Rita's heart was momentarily aflutter with joy, "Just say the word!" But then, it was instantly shattered when she heard these words...
"Can you tell me who you are? I don't think I'm supposed to be associated with you."
"...Huh?...Wait...Huh?..."
"Wait, waitwaitwaitwait..." Lori got up, "What did you just say?!"
"I mean, I appreciate the...extreme hospitality," Lynn blatantly said, "but I don't know any of you people. This isn't something you do for total strangers, is it?"
Rita froze. Her hands were stuck in midair as she realized what had happened.
Leni panicked, "Lynn? Buddy? You're just pulling out strings, right?"
"This is just a prank, right?" Luan giggled in horror, "You've just gone for a run to jog your memory, right? Right?!"
Lynn shook her head. There was no denying it now.
Lynn has amnesia.
Immediately, the girls scattered all over the property, searching for anything that might trigger Lynn's memories.
Lori ran outside and yelled, "DID ANYBODY SAVE ANY PICTURES OF US?!"
"Why? What happened?" Lola asked.
"LYNN HAS AMNESIA!" LORI BELLOWED, "SHE CAN'T REMEMBER WHO WE ARE! OR WHO SHE IS!"
"What?!"
For four hours, while a broken-hearted Rita tended to Lynn, the rest of the family tore the property and luggage apart, trying to find something, anything, that showed Lynn in a photo with her kin. Nothing turned up. They came to the conclusion that the physical form of those precious memories were incinerated per order of the police, to prevent any possibility of tracing them or any of their friends back to them.
Those memories long past, now gone. Buried deep within the subconscious of everyone around Lynn.
That night was spent in sorrow. No one even bothered to prepare a meal due to the pure shock of Lynn's new condition. The family, sans Lynn and Rita, gathered round the living room to discuss their next move...if there was one.
"I heard the news," Lynn Sr solemnly said, "This is our new reality, now. We will have to adjust to it no matter what."
"I agree..." Lisa said, "Prioritizing Lynn's memory recovery will not have any effect on current or future events."
"How could you say that?" Lana was appalled, "This is our sister we're talking about!"
"I just did a scan with the available equipment, which is the most advanced in the world," Lisa shook her head, "Her hippocampus has suffered permanent damage...most likely overexposure from the raw, unfiltered pure energy from the Silverio Gospel's lasers."
"What on earth do gases have to do with this?!" Leni freaked, "We cannot just sniff the memories away!"
"Actually, the IS is relatively new..." Lisa explained, "Not much is known about it. Not even its weapons."
"So, what are we going to do?!" Leni demanded, "We can't just leave her like this!"
"Well..." Lynn Sr curled his fists, "...Lying is no longer an option."
"I agree," Lucy raised her hand, "From now on, we treat her as a family member. Because she is one."
"And we'll do it all over," Luan said.
"We're gonna keep the name Lynn," Luna said, "but she ain't gonna be the gung ho sports hawk she used to be. We're gonna have to treat her right."
"Yes," the father nodded, "After we tell her everything that's happened thus far."
Lori, Leni, Luna, and Luna looked at each other, very worried that they might lose this Lynn as well, but they gave each other the eye of resignation. They recognized that they were relocated because of a secret they eventually forgot about.
"Are we clear on our plan?" Lynn Sr recapped, "We will raise Lynn as the new Lynn only after she accepts the past. After that, no more secrets. Am I clear?" He got many nods in response, but he still wasn't satisfied, "Lisa. Lori. You two stay. Everyone else, bedtime."
Meanwhile, Rita had changed Lynn into a dress that was meant for the victory celebration for the football game.
"Do you like it, honey?..." Rita asked.
"It's beautiful," Lynn said.
"You won us the football tournament," Rita said while the tears flowed, "This was your dress to do as you pleased, Lynn."
"Really?" Lynn raised an eyebrow, but not because of the dress, "I look more like a Sydney kind of girl..."
"No, don't say that..." Rita interrupted, "A Sydney would never be able to pull off this kind of natural beauty..."
Lynn wasn't paying any attention to Rita. She was just looking at her reflection in the mirror and momentarily saw herself as a blonde woman with long hair, "No. Uh-Uh. No. I am Lynn. Not Syd. Lynn."
"Sweetie...please..." Rita's voice quivered, "You're breaking my heart..."
Lynn could tell that she triggered a huge nerve, "Oh. I'm sorry. I should've said something else."
Rita could tell. This was...and wasn't...her daughter. Lynn had reverted back to her pre-fight persona. She couldn't get her daughter back if she tried. All she could do was move on. All she could do was raise her as one of her own. But this time, she would do it right; she would raise the daughter she always wanted. Anything to mend the void in her heart.
The next morning, Kim was at the train station waiting for her can to take her to the airport. Lincoln and Laura accompanied Kim to the final stop.
"I never thought that the title of IS Representative was successory," Laura said.
"It depends on the country," Kim responded, "I heard that South Africa makes you fight the current IS Representative for the title."
"Jesus Christ..." Lincoln breathed.
"So," Kim cleared her throat, "I hear your family did you dirty and have gone into hiding."
"I know," Lincoln said, "I blabbed about everything. No more secrets. Not ever."
"Then, pray tell," Kim winked, "Have you told Ronnie Anne about your new companions yet?"
"GLUP?!" Lincoln flinched, "I haven't any contact with her since I told her..."
"Oh my," Kim snickered, "That's not good."
"Agreed," Laura showed her disdain, "This is just plain idiocy."
"Oh, get off my case, why don't you!" Lincoln snapped, right when they have arrived at the assigned cab.
"Well, this is it," Kim said to Lincoln and Laura, "I will miss our random encounters and fun memories."
"It was a rather enjoyable experience meeting you," Laura shook Kim's hand.
"I would have liked to face you in a practice bout," Kim mused, "Maybe another time."
"I will be looking forward to it," Laura nodded.
Kim then turned to Lincoln, "Well, little Loud, it's been real."
"It's been good," Lincoln responded.
"And at times, it's been real good," Kim chuckled, "It was an honor serving with you, Lincoln."
Lincoln and Kim shared one last hug before Kim waved goodbye. And with that, she departed for the airport, leaving Lincoln and Laura alone to retrace their steps back to the Academy.
"So, what now?" Laura asked, "With everything that's happened this semester, there will be brand new foes to defeat, and far more dangerous threats to eliminate."
"And next semester might be even crazier, now that the whole world is speculating about the Gospel," Lincoln commented, "We have to be ready for anything."
"This Phantom Task group Clarissa speaks of might be a good starting point. They managed to claim the Gospel, so one can only assume that they have confiscated even more powerful units."
"Ohohooo, boy!" Lincoln got pumped, "We're up against a supervillain organization! This is gonna be epic!"
Laura smiled, "In what way?"
"Oh, you know!"
"I hope you can control your emotions long enough to not attract Phantom Task too soon."
"I have cured my emotional diarrhea, thank you very much!"
Laura chuckled, then suddenly flashed to the briefing she was given the night of her final exam. Clarissa gave a full report of the battle of Chicago, including how Lynn fought her hardest despite being fatigued, and how she gave her life to save Lincoln's. "Your family's unique..."
"Uh-" Lincoln was thinking about the same thing, "In some ways, yeah..."
"I would liked to have met them...in a different time..."
Lincoln sighed, "Yeah...me too..."
As the two continued walking, Kim had driven to the airport, where she went to the private lounge and opened up her cellphone in privacy, "안전 해. (Go secure)." She waited until someone picked up on the other end. When the ringtone stopped, she started, "Your pilot did a marvelous job. I was quite jealous of Akina."
"Oh, please. Have a little more faith in Autumn," a womanly voice serenely mused, "Even I can tame her with just the right push."
"Yes," Kim said, "Though I did suggest that M would have been a much better choice."
"That Loud is a pint-sized Ichika," the voice countered, "We cannot risk one of more unstable agents compromising personal well-being."
"...yeah...true..."
"So...I probably shouldn't ask, but...your semester...how'd it go?"
"Hmhmhmhmhm..." Kim grinned, "They never suspected a thing." And with that, she disconnected the call.
The PA sounded the last call for her flight, "THIS IS THE FINAL BOARDING CALL FOR FLIGHT K-3009 TO SEOUL. PLEASE COME TO GATE 8 AT THIS TIME."
Kim flashed her hair and went on her merry way, knowing full well the chain of events she was about to set off...
...and she was excited, "I wonder how you're going to clean up this mess, Lincoln Loud..."
SEASON ONE END